The stories are in my system,” said Ted, “names from 80 years ago are coming back.” One of these names was Harry Dunn. Harry was from a very different social world than Ted, his parents lived at Burfield Hall in Suton and they had their very own maid and butler!

In those days the parents of rich kids only let their children play with other posh kids, and so Ted never got invited to Harry’s home. However, this didn’t stop them from being good mates at school and then at work for 5 or 6 years, until Harry went off to Eaton College to study agriculture.

Most people in those days left school as young teenagers, and continued to play games at lunchtime after they had started work. Ted hung out with his pals, Brian Reem, Chris Fish and Stanley Blake, during his breaks. Brian was an engineer from Little Melton, Chris was from Park Lane, and Stanley lived somewhere inside a row of terraced houses.

They played catch the ball, jump in the sack, and endurance piggy-backs. They also liked to throw around an empty cardboard box, if they found one lying in the street. When it came to making their own entertainment, nothing was wasted.

They enjoyed team games, but they also challenged each other with dares, such as walking along a 9-inch wall. The young ladies of Wymondham used to watch these dares avidly, and they would laugh and say “silly fool” if you fell off the wall. These women never joined in with the men; they had their own games, such as netball and tennis.

Ted still wears a pair of trouser braces, with a horse head design, that he wore while playing these games around 80 years ago. He does wonder if his old mates are still living after all this time. So, if you do remember Ted, please get in touch, as he will be very pleased to see you.

In the meantime, Ted has begun to share his life stories with the other residents of the care home where his wife stays. He feels that if he can cheer other people up with his memories, he will!